What does the m stand for in guitar chords?

Answer 1

Short Answer: A small "m" stands for a minor chord. A large "M" stands for a Major chord.

What's the Difference?

There is a one note difference between a major and a minor chord.

You can change a major chord to a minor chord by lowering the 3rd note of the associated scale by one half step. I will explain this below.

On a guitar, a half step is equal to one fret. Major chords are usually the first chords you learn on a guitar. Examples are E, G, C, and A. These are all major chords.

If you wanted to change an E chord to an E minor chord (Em), you would shift the G# note (the third note in the E scale and the middle note in the chord) down one-half step to a G note. With an open E chord, that means simply lifting your first finger off of the G string. When that finger is down on the first fret, you are playing a G# note.

Another simple example is changing the A chord to an Am chord. With an open A chord, you are holding down the major third (C#) on the second fret of the B string. By moving your fingers so that you are instead holding down the B string at the first fret, you will now be playing a minor third (C).

How are Chords Built Again?

All chords are based on a scale. Major chords are based on the major scale. A scale is a special pattern of notes defined by the numbers of half steps between each note. The major C scale is easy: C D E F G A B C

Remember, one fret on a guitar is a half step. Two frets are a whole step.

The note D is one whole step (2 frets) away from C. The note F is one half step away from E. On the guitar, F is on the first fret of both E strings. C is on the first fret of the B string and D is two frets higher (third fret).

The pattern for a major scale is: 1 W 2 W 3 H 4 W 5 W 6 W 7 H 8

W =whole step; H = half step; Notes 1 & 8 have the same letter.

In the C scale, there is a half step between E and F (3 & 4) and between B and C (7 & 8). Using this pattern, you can create any scale.

To do this, you need to shift some notes up or down one-half step. Moving a note up is making it Sharp. You use the # sign to indicate a note is being raised one-half step. Moving a note down is making it Flat. One a keyboard, you can use a small b to indicate a flat. So, C# means that the C note is raised one half step. Db means the D note is lowered one-half step. And yes, C# and Db are the same note when played on a guitar.

The "A" scale = A B C# D E F# G# A play these notes on a guitar to see the relationships. Start on the A string as note 1 (A), then hold down the string at the second fret (two frets up) for B, the fourth fret for C#, the fifth fret for D, and so on.

A chord is made of three or more notes. A "C" chord uses C E G. Those are the First, Third and Fifth note of the "C" scale. Playing these three notes together gives you a "C" chord.

On guitar, those are the lowest three notes in an open C chord. Third fret of the A string is C (1st note of the scale). Second fret of the D string is E (3rd note). The unfretted G string gives you G (5th note). The other strings on the guitar simply duplicate other notes in the chord. So a C chord on guitar gives you: E C E G C E from the lowest sounding string to the highest one, when you strum all six strings.

Strumming all six strings on a guitar when fingering an E chord gives you: E B E G# B E By now, you might recognize E as the first note of the E scale, G# as the 3rd note, and B as the fifth note. That is a major chord.

Each major Chord is based on the scale of the First note of that chord. An "A" chord is based on the A scale: A B C# D E F# G# A

What about Minor Chords?

Minor chords are based on a minor scale. This gets more complicated becuase there are three different minor scales. One thing they all have in common is that the 3rd note is lowered one-half step from the 3rd note of a major scale. In Cm the third note (E) becomes an Eb. A Cm chord has the notes C Eb G.

In Am, the third note (C#) becomes C. An Am chord has the notes A C E.

The simplest way to change a major chord into a minor chord is the flatten the 3 note in the chord by moving a finnger one fret toward the nut of the guitar. This is easier to do in some open chords than in others.

Easy: Am Dm Em - just move one finger (the third note in the scale) down one fret. For Dm, you are holding the high E string down on the first fret. For the D chord, you hold the High E string down on the second fret. This change means shifting some of your fingers around, but you get used to it.

More challenging: Bm Cm Fm Gm - uses the same principle, but the fingering gets more challenging. For Cm, you have to mute bith the low and high E strings so they do not sound, and fret the D string at the first fret instead of the second. This becomes a finger twister and there are easier ways to play a Cm chord.

Why are Minor Chords Used?

Minor chords are considered more emotionally sad and are often used for that purpose. A blues song in a Minor key (Em/Am/Bm) sounds just a little bluesier than a blues in a Major key (A/D/E). Major chords could be considered "happy" but really they are just neutral.

Chords are used to add richness to a song's melody. They underscore the feeling of the song and help provide a firm foundation for the melody.

Minor chords are also used for other reasons, some of which relate to deeper issues of Music Theory than I am covering here. This is more important when you are writing songs than when you are playing songs.

Answer 2

A lowercase 'm' after the chord designation means the chord is a minor chord, for example Fm or Am. This means it is made of at least the Root, the Minor Third and the Perfect Fifth, for example; F, Ab, C or A, Cb, E. This differs from a major chord in that a major has the Root, Perfect Third and Perfect Fifth. Major chords create a more peaceful tone, while minor chords convey a more chaotic or disjointed emotion.

Generally one can make a minor chord by finding the string(s) on which you are fretting the perfect third in the corresponding major chord and instead fingering the note one fret lower on the neck, bringing it down a half step.